The Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) has agreed on a project for the design and prototype development of an indigenous fifth-generation stealth fighter at a cost of around ₹15,000 crore.
Perhaps, it’s the most significant military project to be cleared by the government before Bharat’s general elections due in April-May.
‘The project will include the design and development of five twin-engine AMCA prototypes, with the stealth fighter to go into production only after a decade’, said the officials.
The Indian Air Force’s (IAF) modernization map predicts the deployment of around 120 stealth fighters (six squadrons) from 2035 onwards, with the advanced planes forming an important element of future air combat.
The Defence Research and Development Organisation’s (DRDO) Aeronautical Development Agency and state-run plane-maker Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) will be involved in the AMCA project, which will be developed in two phases.
The first two squadrons will comprise the Mk-1 version of AMCA powered by the American F-414 engines, while the remaining four squadrons will have the more advanced Mk-2 version equipped with an even more powerful engine to be built in Bharat with foreign collaboration.
The joint production of GE Aerospace’s F-414 engines in Bharat will help the country overcome a striking technology gap, and lay the foundation for indigenous development of bigger jet engines, and the American company and HAL could hammer out a deal this year.
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